From the early days of electric power generator equipment, the only way that has been considered to obtain the changing magnetic field has been the moving of coils of wire past magnets or magnets past coils. For many years electric power generator engineering focused on different configurations of moving of coils past magnets or magnets past coils. Since the idea has worked, however inefficiently, the way by which electricity was produced did not change for many years.
The rising cost of energy sources and environmental pollution concerns, caused by vast amount of fuel burning, motivated governments and industry to pay attention and prioritize enhancements in power generation efficiency. One of the pioneering efforts in improving generator efficiency was made by Ecklin in U.S. Pat. No. 3,879,622 enclosed herein by reference.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,879,622 discloses a permanent magnet motor in one embodiment utilizes a spring-biased reciprocating magnetizable member positioned between two permanent magnets. Magnetic shields in the form of rotatable shutters are located between each permanent magnet and the reciprocating member to alternately shield and expose the member to the magnetic field thereby producing reciprocating motion. A second embodiment utilizes a pair of reciprocating spring-biased permanent magnets with adjacent like magnetic poles separated by a magnetic shield which alternately exposes and shields the like poles from the repelling forces of their magnetic fields. In his SAG 6 generator idea, Ecklin is using a slightly different configuration from the configuration in this reference, in which both the magnets and the coil are stationary. By refraining from having to put most of the input power in moving heavy masses of coils or magnets the SAG6 generator is significantly more efficient.
A significant feature of an electrical generator is to have a configuration, which maximizes the power output of a given generator physical size. Mounting space constrains and easier handling capability demands generator configurations which minimize the physical size for a given power output.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,691,119 enclosed herein by reference discloses an AC power generating system includes an array of permanent magnet alternators. The stator windings of these alternators are electrically connected in series and the total output voltage of the alternator array is regulated by adjusting the relative angular positions of the stators to control the phase angle of the output voltage of each alternator. The alternators employ an inside-out design wherein a plurality of permanent magnets are positioned at circumferentially displaced locations on an internal surface of a nonmagnetic support structure to form the rotor. A stator having a core with longitudinal slots for receiving a stator winding is positioned within the rotor structure such that relative rotation between the stator and rotor induces a voltage in the stator winding.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,218,025 enclosed herein by reference discloses a rotational magnetic electrical generating device that produces an alternating electrical current generated by a central rotational magnetic cylinder with an inner cavity having a central fixed coil operated by a DC current providing a driving rotational force upon a plurality of embedded neodymium magnets within the inner cavity of the central rotational magnetic cylinder, the central rotational magnetic cylinder having an upper outer margin with an upper magnetic ring and a lower outer margin having a lower magnetic ring, the two magnetic rings suspending the central rotational magnetic cylinder between two fixed magnetic fields supported by a frame member, the central rotational magnetic cylinder further having an outer perimeter surface embedded with a plurality of neodymium alloy magnets equally sized and spaced apart, a lower surface embedded with a plurality of neodymium alloy magnets equally sized and spaced apart, and an upper surface embedded with a plurality of neodymium alloy magnets equally sized and spaced apart and an upper surface embedded with a plurality of neodymium alloy magnets equally sized and spaced apart. A plurality of alternate wound electrical stators are suspended above the upper surface below the lower surface and around the outer perimeter surface of the central rotational magnetic cylinder, supported by the frame member while insulated from the frame member, each electrical stator connected to external leads to transmit alternating current generated by the spinning central rotational magnetic cylinder, the entire device enclosed within a vacuum.
U.S. application Ser. No. 10/272,839 enclosed herein by reference discloses a flywheel motor/generator having a holder to maintain the permanent magnets in a circular array on the rotor. Unique aspects of the invention include the magnet shapes that are used, the liner/retainer configuration used to secure the magnets, and the construction of the rotor in the immediate vicinity of the magnets. The principal functions of the design are 1) managing stresses in the rotor and the magnets at high speed when centrifugal acceleration can exceed 100,000 g's, and 2) securing the magnets when the assembly is at rest when magnets that are not properly secured can reposition themselves in deleterious ways through mutual attraction or repulsion. Keying features are also provided on the ends of the magnets to aid in assembly of the rotor and to maintain the magnets in the proper orientation.
Hence there is still a long felt need for an efficient electric generator that maximizes the electrical power output for a give physical size.